Today we’d like to introduce you to Lisa Weldon.
Hi Lisa, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
In 2011, at age 58, I cut a map of Manhattan into 20 pieces and walked one piece per day until I covered the entire island. After walking each day, I recorded my findings in my blog, then shared my words and photos through social media. It was from this experience that I learned the power of storytelling.
The next year I spent thirty days walking every arrondissement of Paris. Huffington Post invited me to chronicle my walks then published my first submission on the front cover of their “Living Fearlessly” section. Oprah’s network, Harpo Productions, caught wind of my walks and invited me to give Cindy Crawford advice on turning 50.
I have since walked Shanghai, Istanbul, the country of Panama, and will walk Tel Aviv in October.
I have just released my memoir. It’s the story of a 58-year-old woman who reinvents herself by taking 30 days to walk through the pieces of her life.
For fun, 20 quirky things about me:
1. Although I dearly love Atlanta, I’d love to live in NYC, at least for a year.
2. My favorite art form is graffiti. When I walked Paris back in 2021, I spent most of my time in alleyways. I never stepped foot in the Louvre.
3. Auburn University holds a very special place in my heart. Ah, the memories, the stories…
4. I’ve taken flying lessons.
5. One of my favorite restaurants in Atlanta is the cafeteria at the DeKalb Farmer’s Market. They serve foods from all over the world and have the best dessert counter in town.
6. My first car was a red ‘66 Corvette Stingray. My father actually bought it for himself but my mother said, “Hell, no!” So, I got it.
7. I loved being an Air Force brat. Some of my fondest memories are from growing up in El Salvador and sitting behind the pilot’s seat as my Dad flew to Panama.
8. In my senior year in high school, I skipped a class. I was caught and sent to the principal’s office … by my own mother, who taught at my school.
9. My husband’s bout with cancer changed my life.
10. At age 27, I opened my first advertising business.
11. I caddied for my husband in the British Open qualifying round.
12. I’m very Southern. Although I love the traditions, etiquette and formality … I don’t like sweet tea.
13. I was taught in the fourth grade that my non-Christian friends would not go to heaven. Believe it or not, I worried about that for years. I know better now.
14. I’m a Scorpio. Don’t cross me.
15. I keep my passport up-to-date at all times. Give me the opportunity and I’ll jump on an airplane and go anywhere. On my to-see list are South Africa, Vietnam, St. Petersburg, plus I want to go back to El Salvador.
16. I have one tattoo – a circle with the number 5 in it – on the inside of my wrist. Got it on my 65th birthday.
17. One of the TV commercials I designed was shown at the Cannes Film Festival.
18. I’ve lived in 10 different cities in my lifetime: Montgomery, Salt Lake City (Ogden), Warner Robins, Alexandria, San Salvador, Mobile, Auburn, Birmingham, Houston, and Atlanta.
19. My favorite visual is the water at Isla Mujeres … layers of aqua, teal, azure, turquoise, cerulean, robin egg blue, viridian and seafoam green.
20. I was extremely shy growing up. I wouldn’t go to movies because it required talking to the lady in the ticket booth. Now I talk too much.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
No, not at all. At age 58 my world collapsed. My 25-year marriage ended; the only home my children had ever known fell into foreclosure; and my last child left the nest. My financial lifeline, my career in advertising, had gone stagnant.
When all this happened, I decided to go away for 30 days, all alone to New York City and take a crash course to learn the new digital ways of my business… and to reinvent myself professionally. Yes, it hard, hard as hell. But the payoff was huge!
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
My first book, Twenty Pieces, was released in September of last year. It was named a Silver Winner 2022 Nautilus Books Awards and Finalist in the 2021 American Best Books Awards. It has a 5-star rating on Amazon.
My book: tinyurl.com/2p8r5s2j
What are your plans for the future?
I’m writing my second book, Blood Sisters, a novel about an unlikely friendship between two ten years old Alabama girls during the Civil Right Era. Their story teaches us that we must first find our commonalities before we can appreciate our differences.
Pricing:
- $19.99
Contact Info:
- Website: LisaWeldon.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lisaweldon/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LisaWeldon
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/lisaweldon
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUck1ptCa3WrGNgNEwV7rcw
Image Credits
Michele Stapleton, Emma Weldon
